Meditate Three Minutes a Day to Increase Your Inner Peace

Are you willing to spend a few minutes a day to help relieve your stress and improve your happiness? A daily three minute meditation can have positive physiological, psychological, and spiritual benefits.

Many hesitate to start a meditation practice because they worry about doing it correctly. While there are certainly practices that take years to master, benefits are also gained from spending any length of time in any kind of meditation, regardless of skill or experience.

The best approach is to just do it and avoid focusing on what will happen as a result. When you first start, recognize that some days you will feel good about it and others days you may feel like you are wasting your time. Try to take a larger view and understand that the value of meditation is in simply doing it, not in how each experience feels or in how ‘well’ you are doing it. Each time you spend a few minutes moving yourself out of the busyness of doing, into the quiet of being, you are doing something good for yourself.

To start, it is a good idea to try a few different approaches to find the practice that works best for you. And, since there are no rules, feel free to adapt your practice to suit yourself.

One technique is to follow the breath. Breathe in, hold your breath to the count of five, and slowly exhale. Keep your attention on your breath. Whenever your mind wanders, gently bring it back to paying attention to your breath. You might want to notice if any of your muscles are tense. If so, let them gently unclench. Spend a few minutes, just noticing your breath, letting your thoughts float away, and relaxing any tense muscles.

Another method is to simply spend those few minutes in quiet contemplation. You may choose to spend time in prayer to, and communion with, the god of your understanding. Instead of trying to quiet your mind, move your thoughts from the everyday to spiritual.

Once you are comfortable meditating for a few minutes, increase the time you spend to 5 minutes, then 10. Keep it manageable for yourself so you aren’t tempted to stop your practice. You will receive benefits if you only spend a few minutes a day so don’t pressure yourself with unrealistic expectations.

Give your mind a break from its busyness and gift yourself with a few minutes a day of meditation to help balance your physical, emotional, and mental states. Discover the peace that can be found in just being instead of doing. Notice your level of happiness increase as you establish a daily meditation practice.